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ERIC Number: ED611597
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2021-Feb
Pages: 15
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Students Experiencing Homelessness in Pennsylvania: New Evidence of Under-Identification and Inequity
Shaw-Amoah, Anna; Lapp, David
Research for Action
As Research for Action (RFA) found in 2018 (see ED593694), Pennsylvania schools have a history of under-identifying students experiencing homelessness, denying likely hundreds of students the educational rights afforded by federal law each year. Now the state, along with the whole nation, is facing multiple crises as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, from healthcare to job and housing loss. The aftershocks of this pandemic are likely to bring more families to the tipping point of overcrowding, temporary housing, and homelessness. PA schools will need to support these growing numbers of students experiencing homelessness ("SEH") over the next few years. This brief provides some evidence of improvement in identification of SEH in PA since RFA's 2018 report. However, rates vary by school community and Pennsylvania overall ranks only 36th out of 50 states in identification of SEH per school-aged children in poverty. Data indicate that Philadelphia -- the city with the highest overall population of people experiencing homelessness -- is particularly under-identifying SEH, especially in its charter school sector. Meanwhile, in cyber charter schools across the state enrollment of SEH has increased dramatically over time. Finally, the brief concludes with a discussion of the growing rural student homelessness population in PA, a trend that brings to light the statewide nature of the student homelessness crisis.
Research for Action. 3701 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104. Tel: 215-823-2500; Fax: 215-823-2510; e-mail: info@researchforaction.org; Web site: http://www.researchforaction.org
Publication Type: Reports - Research-practitioner Partnerships; Reports - Research; Numerical/Quantitative Data
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: Research for Action
Identifiers - Location: Pennsylvania; Pennsylvania (Philadelphia); United States; Pennsylvania (Pittsburgh)
Identifiers - Laws, Policies, & Programs: Stewart B McKinney Homeless Assistance Act 1987
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A